Good morning! Hasan Minhaj is now officially the Riddler. Spotify is launching a new Batman series with comedian-actor Minhaj starring as the Riddler. It's a Spotify kind of day today...

Highlight of the day

Spotify unveiled a major redesign of its mobile app UI. Updates include a vertically scrolling "discovery" feed, a "smart shuffle" mode for playlist recommendations, and podcast autoplay. The moves reflect Spotify's continued efforts to move beyond music in a bid to boost margins.

Features & products hot off the press

Big tech

• TikTok blocks links to app store pages from creators' bios 

• Netflix lets users customized text for subtitles and close captions 

• Google expands VPN access to all Google One members 

• Spotify launches a Patreon integration and revamps its podcaster tools

• Spotify unveils growth and ad tools for artists, merch, and live events

• Coinbase ships wallet-as-a-service to simplify crypto onboarding  

General and early-stage

• DuckDuckGo ships DuckAssist, a ChatGPT powered search tool 

• Wonder Dynamics unveils a CG character studio tool 

• Forethought adds generative AI to its chatbot platform 

• Worldcoin unveils an AI tool to prove you're a human

• Beehiiv launches subscriber flows and automation analytics 

Other good finds

• History books. Monetization in the early days of social and gaming

• No more. Silvergate Capital to shut down and liquidate its bank

• Wooden spoon. The list of most deleted apps in the US

Twitter nugget

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- Amol